Featured Large Capped Bust Quarters

Two new arrivals this month, an 1820 B-1 and an 1821 B-5. Both die marriages are rated as R4 (“very scarce,” 76-200 extant), but I don’t really agree with 1820 B-1 being rated R4. I went through eBay yesterday and there were twelve 1820 B-1’s for sale (out of 46 1820 quarters), so maybe R2 or R3 is a bit more appropriate. Regardless of how scarce the die marriages are, both coins are eye appealing original coins.

1820 B-1 (Large 0), “R4,” PCGS G6:




1821 B-5, R4, NGC VG8:



As an aside, I now have all three major varieties for 1820 (Large 0, Medium 0, and Small 0), so that’s pretty neat.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

This past week another tough bust quarter arrived in the mail. This time it’s an 1818 B-9, graded VG8 by PCGS.



1818 B-9 is the toughest die marriage for the year, and the die state with the arrowhead clashes above the cap on the obverse is especially popular with collectors. Unfortunately this coin is an earlier die state before the arrowhead clashes formed, but it’s still a welcome addition to my collection. Maybe someday I’ll get an example with the clashes.

The reverse die was first used to strike B-7, during which the crack through the N in UNITED began to develop. The reverse was then used to strike B-9. As more B-9’s were struck, the crack developed further. The reverse was then used to strike more B-7’s with the heavy die crack present.

 

I have been putting together a set of the 1815 and 1825 Bust quarters with the "E" and "L" counterstamps.

Anyone have any info on these?

 

I suggest picking up Steve Tompkins' Early Bust Quarters book. That's the best source of info for the E and L quarters that you can find.

http://www.earlyunitedstatescoins.c...uarters_1796-1838_-_by_Steve_M._Tompkins.html

 

Thank you. I certainly will!

 

+1 on the Steve Tompkins book. It’s probably my favorite numismatic book.

 

Here’s the latest addition to my collection, an 1825/4/2 B-2 (R2) bust quarter:

1825/4/2, B-2, R2, PCGS VG8


All 1825 quarters are technically 1825/4/2, and two obverse dies and three reverse dies were used to strike three die marriages. This B-2 was the last of the three die marriages that I needed for 1825. Below are the other two, for reference.

1825/4/2, B-1, R5, PCGS G6


1825/4/2, B-3, R3, NGC G4

 

You should be proud of that set. Very nice! Thanks for posting!

 

Another large capped bust quarter has arrived: 1819 B-3, R1 (small 9). This is the most common of the four die marriages dated 1819, and along with the scarce B-4, makes up the “small 9” major variety. This coin is a nice crusty original example, and is graded VG8 by PCGS.



Somethings special about this die marriage is that it was struck with a reverse die that was left over from 1818, as evidenced by the style of numerals in the denomination. This reverse die shows strong repunching of the 5 and an extra period near the lowest arrowhead, and the engravers probably recognized these blunders, and held the die in reserve until they needed to use it in 1819. The following closeup shows a better view of the repunched 5 and extra period in the denomination.



There is one other reverse die in this series that was prepared in 1818 but set aside due to “subpar” engraving. This other die is the very popular “25/50” reverse, which was used in 1822 and again in 1828. The two 25/50 die marriages are very expensive, so don’t expect me to post one of those anytime soon!!

 

Another recent addition: an 1818 B-10 (R3) bust quarter. This is the first raw bust quarter that I’ve bought in a while, and I grade it G+ to VG. The coin is completely original and has a nice “circulated cameo” appearance.

Something interesting about this die marriage is that an example was used to prepare dies used to strike many of the modern counterfeit bust quarters that commonly pop up. These fakes bear a wide variety of dates, but fortunately the remaining 1818 B-10 die markers are dead giveaways that these “coins” are fake.

 

next time I go to the ANA I'll talk to Steve, probably get the book

 

Here’s a second 1820 B-5 (an R5 die marriage!). Usually I don’t buy duplicates, but when a nice original R5 appears on eBay for a low price, it’s hard to say “no!” Plus, it never hurts to have a spare as trade material.

 

It’s been over a year since I’ve posted an update, but here are two recent acquisitions that are new die marriages in my set:

1818 B-7, R4 (NGC G6)




1821 B-4, R2 (ICG G6)


(Photo is from David Lawrence Rare Coins)


The 1818 B-7 is a particularly welcome addition, since that was the scarcest 1818 die marriage that I had yet to pick up. The remaining five 1818 die marriages (B-2, B-3, B-4, B-5, and B-8) range from common to only somewhat scarce.

 

I'm a little late to the party but here is my contribution to the discussion. As I learned from NSP's original posting the 1818 is the most common coin of the series. Still, it was a costly purchase. It is an AU-50 Browning-4 and has a green bean. When I started my type set I had no idea just how difficult it would be to find nice examples of bust quarters. I have also included a photo of my other Capped Bust beauty. It's an AU-58

 

One of these is in the top 5 list of "next" for my type set... Just aquired it's little buddy (small)a month or 2 ago... These could get dangerous fast as I really love this design you 35 is a bit nicer then mine but I love it anyway lol